Foreclosure Filings Fall in May by 5%

This comes as no surprise as the majority of at risk properties have already been foreclosed on. Also with the rise in home prices more homes are in an equity position and can therefore be sold without costing the home owner money. For a more detailed look at this subject – please read the article below.

Foreclosure filings were reported on roughly 110,000 U.S. properties in May, a 5 percent decrease from April, according to RealtyTrac’s latest U.S. Foreclosure Market Report. Foreclosure filings, which include default notices, scheduled auctions, and bank repossessions, were down 26 percent year-over-year in May to the lowest level since December 2006.

The report found that one in every 1,199 U.S. housing units had a foreclosure filing during the month.

However, individual states saw monthly increases despite the overall national decline. Statewide, 21 states posted monthly increases in overall activity, with 11 states posting annual increases in foreclosure activity.

“It’s not surprising that some of the states with the longest foreclosure timelines are those with markets still dealing with increasing foreclosure activity even as the country as a whole continues to hit new lows,” said Daren Blomquist, VP at RealtyTrac. “On the other hand, the increase in bank repossessions in some states with shorter foreclosure timelines like California and Oregon demonstrates there is still some pent-up foreclosure activity in those states as well.”

Bank repossessions also fell in May, hitting the lowest level seen since July 2007—an 82-month low. Lenders repossessed 28,373 U.S. properties in May, down 6 percent month-over-month and down 27 percent yearly.